The Kingdom of Aincrad
by RadioHeart
Summary: What if Aincrad wasn't a virtual world, but the real one? Queen Asuna works to reclaim her floating castle in the sky from the monsters who invaded it and has no aid from the other races. The fairies of ALfheim are divided among races and allying herself with one race would bring about the wrath of other races, and the humans of Gun Gale too are at war with each other.
1. Chapter 1

Hello everyone and thanks for reading my newest fan fiction, reading this author's note is unnecessary so feel free to skip it if you wish. I've been wanting to use this idea for a while, so I started to write this on the buss on my way to school. This is my first SAO fan fiction so I want to apologize for any OOCness. In this story Kirito has a son so I'd love ideas for who the son should be, for now he will just be mentioned and remain nameless. If I have to, he'll be an OC but I'd prefer not. Without further ado, here is the first chapter.

~O~O~O~

The council sat around a large table with the queen at the head and the general standing at her right side. The eldest council member, Nishida, finally spoke up, "We need help, there has to be someone we could ask for help." The general, Kirito, walked forward to speak, "There is no one to ask for help, all attempts to seek out assistance from others is sure to fail. It's foolish to even try."

"What about the fairies?" "Impossible, I have close ties with the Spriggans and could ask for their help, and the Sylph would surely help out too, but that would bring about the wrath of other fairy species, we would gain two allies but both have enemies with other races, powerful ones at that, we're already stretched too thin and can't fight in another war. As long as the fairies are at war with each other, we would only suffer from an alliance."

Kirito looked at Nishida the whole time. Then another council member spoke up, "What about the humans? They can at least provide us with guns." "And how do you suppose we get those guns? We can't simply walk over there and buy them, it would be considered invading their territory. I could ask my sister, Sinon, and her guild to provide us with some but that country is even more divided than ALfheim. Another problem is that no one knows how to use them except me and I can just barely use a small handgun, teaching an entire army to change to using guns would just be unreasonable."

It was then that the queen, Asuna, stood up, "We shall continue this at a later date, I have much to think about and I have difficulty focusing when I am so worried about my daughter." All fifteen council members stood up, bowed, and then left. With a sigh, Asuna sat back down in her chair, leaning against the arm rest heavily.

"Majesty, you must go to your chambers and rest. I will walk you there, then call a maid to your side to tend to you." Asuna stood up exhaustively, "This war is taking far too long, the worry and stress keep me up at night." Kirito nodded, "I agree the length at times seems unbearable, but we can't be impatient. We would loose more men and women if we were hasty and rushed into battle."

Asuna looked at her right hand man and noticed how sad he seemed, "No, I was foolish for sending such a small scouting group. I should have known to send better fighters with you." Asuna looked back at the time and knew Kirito knew what she meant.

The general shook his head, "You couldn't have known that they would die. But, it's difficult to bear at times. Many nights I wake up and feel around for her and then realize she's gone, or I'll turn around to tell one of my brothers something only to find no one behind me." Asuna remembered clearly the day she sent Kirito with his brothers and wife to scout a dungeon, only to have Kirito return alone.

He still grieved for the loss of most of his family. Luckily his two sisters were in different countries at the time, but Kirito lost all his brothers and his wife, Sachi. "Oh, how is your son by the way?" Kirito smiled slightly, "He is gentle and kind, just like his mother. He asks questions from time to time, but that's to be expected. How is your daughter?"

"I worry for her but she is a strong girl. She helps keep up the moral of those fighting on the front line and those who are brave enough to live in the cities so close to the front lines."

Kirito nodded, they had arrived at the queen's quarters so Kirito turned to leave and call the maid as promised, before disappearing into the shadows. "Kirito," Kirito turned back to face Asuna, "It's been a year hasn't it?" Kirito nodded once more, "Bring flowers to her grave for me." The general turned back down the hallway, quietly calling over his shoulder, "Thank you."

~O~O~O~

Kirito sat in a hotel room, staring at the ceiling with his feet propped up on the table in front of him. With a sigh, Kirito got up and walked out of the hotel, equipping his sword as he went. He went up a couple floors and then entered a forest, planing on killing some things to pass the night. The forest was swarming with monsters, all easily killed.

Kirito was just wandering aimlessly until he heard the sounds of fighting. He followed the sound until he came upon a clearing where men in red armor were killing off a pack of wolves. "Oh, Kirito! What're you doing out here so late?" The man who spoke up then looked behind him to talk to the men fighting, "You guys clean up here, I'll be right back." Turning back to the swordsman in black, the man smiled and walked up to him, slinging an arm around his shoulders.

"Klein, it's been a while." The man, Klein, laughed at that, "Ya, and the country of Gun Gale is only a _little_ violent. It's been months, show some more enthusiasm." Kirito sighed at his best friends antics, "I'll see you around."

At that, Kirito walked away, leaving a confused Klein behind. Klein rubbed the back of his neck with one hand and placed his other hand on his hip as he muttered under his breath, "Jeez, he used to be so energetic before the war."

~O~O~O~

I think you all know that I don't own SAO, I'm not that awesome.


	2. Chapter 2

Don't kill meeeeee! Ok I'm not gonna give an excuse, as I'm sure you've heard it all before. I did some thinking and there really isn't anyone I can think of who can be Kirito's son, so I guess he'll be an OC, hope you like him.

~O~O~O~

Kirito wandered around Aincrad for a while until he ended up standing in front of Sachi's grave, not really sure how he got there. He stood there hesitantly for a few minutes before speaking, his voice raw with emotion "... Hey... I really miss you, Yuki too. He's so much like you, you'd be proud. Yesterday he asked me if you were lonely without us with you. I told him that no matter what happens you'd be there with him... But I find myself asking the same thing... It's hard without you here..."

"One whole year, huh. It feels like an eternity yet it also feels like a second. I miss her too." Kirito turned around to see his two sisters Leafa and Shion standing behind him. "What're you guys doing here?" This time Shion spoke up, "What, are we not allowed to see our brother and visit his wife's grave with him?"

Kirito shook his head and smiled a little. "It's good to see you two. Haven't seen either of you since Yuki's birthday about two months ago." Both girls nodded.

"That reminds me," Shion spoke up, suddenly serious, "Tell your friend Klein that he will be missing something between his legs if he dares hit on me again." Kirito sweatdropped while Leafa just laughed. "O-ok..." Shion backed off and nodded triumphantly, "Good."

"Oh, Nii-chan, we're staying at your place for a week to catch up." "That's fine. Yuki is at a friend's house tonight, but he'll be back in the morning. We should head there now, it's really late." His sisters agreed and they walked home.

~O~O~O~

The next morning Kirito woke up to Yuki shaking him, "Papa! Papa! Aunty Shion and Aunty Leafa are here!" Kirito groaned and sat up, "Ya, they got here last night." "Aunty Leafa said she'd teach me how to cook! And Aunty Shion's gonna teach me archery!"

Kirito smiled at the five year old. Suddenly he got out of bed and threw Yuki over his shoulder, running out of the bedroom and towards the kitchen, planning on getting breakfast started. Yuki squealed in delight, his aqua eyes closed in delight and smile wide.

When they got to the kitchen, Kirito saw Shion trying (key word here) to make breakfast. There was egg all over the counter, once frozen blueberries on the floor, and a sister with more batter on her than in her bowl.

Shion instantly turned bright red when she noticed her brother staring at her in shock. "Um... Papa?" Kirito set his son down on the ground and looked into his eyes, "This is why Aunty Shion is never allowed in the kitchen." He then turned his son around to see the mess. Both boys bursting out laughing.

Kirito ruffled his son's onyx hair before shooing Shion out of the kitchen, telling her to "take a bath." With one disaster taken care of, Kirito started on the other, simultaneously cleaning and cooking. He just finished when Leafa and Shion walked down stairs together, the guest rooms being on the second floor.

"Good morning!" Leafa smiled wide as she greeted the two boys downstairs. She had heard what happened from Shion, who had begrudgingly asked for help getting the batter out of her hair, and had a good laugh. What better way to start the day then to laugh at your big sister's expense?

Kirito set the dining table with a plate stacked high with blueberry pancakes in the middle. Everyone sat down and dug in excitedly. It was comfortably silent until Leafa spoke up, "Nii-chan, do you have any plans for the day?"

Kirito was about to answer until he heard a knock on the front door. He got up to answer it, gesturing to his family that he'd be a minute. When he answered the door he was suddenly pushed back from the force of a small child suddenly hugging him.

"Yui?" Kirito looked to the front door to see Asuna standing there. "You're going to choke him to death." Yui pulled back and smiled, "Sorry." Kirito shook his head, "it's fine," Kirito then turned to Asuna, "why're you two here?" "Yui just got back and insisted on seeing you this very moment."

Kirito shook his head in exasperation and chuckled.

He invited the queen and princess in, leading them to the dining room where they sat down and helped themselves to breakfast, at Kirito's insistence. "The council meeting will resume tomorrow, but other than that nothing has changed." Queen Asuna replied to Kirito asking for the real reason behind her visit. He nodded in understanding.

For the remainder of the meal, Kirito sat silently, listening to his family and friends catching up and all around enjoying themselves.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3! Whoot! It took me a while to finish chapter 2 but I promise I'll try my hardest to get 3 done in a timely manner.

Review responses:

Anonymous: thanks and I promise not to disappear

Animelove22: I was gonna go into that this chapter, actually. Give everyone some back story and stuff. Thanks for asking.

Just to let you guys kinda know where I'm headed with this:

-I don't ship Asuna and Kirito, so you will not be seeing that happen in this story.

-you will see Yui x Yuki, I think they'd be so cute!

-Liz, Agil, Argo, and many yet to be seen characters will pop up eventually, please be patient

-the farthest the story will go is five chapters probably, and then an epilogue after Castle Aincrad is taken back by the Aincarians (residents of Castle Aincrad, not very original but whatever).

-um... I think that's it, send me a message if you have any other Q's

Let the story... BEGIN!

~O~O~O~

15 years ago

Ages:

Kirito - 10

Klein - 10

Asuna - 11

Leafa - 7

Shion - 9

Tetsuo - 13 (twin)

Keita - 13 (twin)

Ducker - 11

Sasamaru - 12

Sachi - 9

~•~•~•~

"Kirito! Wait up!" Said raven stopped and waited for his best friend, No, brother, ran to catch up to him. Keita and Kirito had been best friends for years, and after Kirito's parents died, Keita's adopted him. Kirito's father was Sylph and his mother was Spriggan.

His little sister was taken in by their father's sister, Aunt Mayari. Aunt Mayari blamed Kirito's mom for her brother's death and refused to take in Kirito, who took after his Spriggan mom.

He was sent to an orphanage in Aincrad since there are no orphanages in Gun Gale or Alfheim. There he meet Shion. He befriended her quickly and soon considered her a sister. She got adopted by humans and was taken to back to Gun Gale, which is where she lived before her birth parents abandoned her.

He also meet Keida, the son of one of the workers at the orphanage, a bubbly and happy woman. She and Keita took a liking to Kirito and a year after being orphaned, Keita's mom, Lizbeth, adopted him.

That was one month ago, and now Kirito is walking to school with Keita, Keita's twin, Tetsuo, the middle child, Sasamaru, and Ducker, the other adopted kid. This was going to be Kirito's first day at school since being orphaned, and he was kind of nervous.

The five brothers lived near the school so before Kirito knew it, he was already walking into the classroom. None of his brothers shared a class with him so he had planned on just sitting alone, but a certain strawberry blonde had other plans.

She walked right up to him, crossed her arms over her chest, and looked at Kirito intently, a look that could almost be misinterpreted as a glare. "What's your name? I'm Asuna." Kirito smiled at her shyly, "I'm Kirito, nice to meet you, Asuna."

She smiled back at him, " My mom's the queen so when I succeed her, I'm gonna make you my general, ok?" "Kirito looked at her in confusion, "Why?" Asuna started waving her arms expressively as she talked, "Duh! Cause I like you. All the boys here are annoying and shallow, I may be a princess but it doesn't mean I can't beat each and every one of them up."

She ended her sentence with a 'hmph' and once more crossed her arms over her chest. Kirito chuckled and ruffled Asuna's hair. In response, she slapped his hand away. "Next time you do that, I'm punching you in the gut."

That was the beginning of a friendship that lasted all through their school years and into adulthood.

~•~•~•~

10 years ago

Lizbeth, her husband, Deiso, and their five sons sat in the living room waiting for Kirito's sisters to arrive. He had kept in touch with both of them throughout the years and invited them to come visit. He also invited Asuna, an old classmate and friend named Klein, and his girlfriend Sachi.

The first to arrive was Klein. They sat and chatted about random things with Kirito's family while they waited for everyone else to arrive.

Kirito stood up as soon as he heard the doorbell, quickly going to answer it, everyone else following close behind him. When he opened the door he saw Leafa and hugged her tightly.

Leafa laughed softly, "Miss me, Nii-chan?" Kirito pulled back and smiled, "Ya, come meet my family. This is my mom, Liz. This is my dad, Deiso. This is my friend, Klein, and these are my brothers: Keita, Ducker, Sasamaru, and Tetsuo."

Kirito gestured to each person as he introduced them. "Nice to meet you all," then she whispered to Kirito, "how do you tell Keita and Tetsuo apart?" She sounded nearly panicked, and due to being a loud person, everyone heard her, causing them all to laugh, Klein laughing the loudest of them all.

Keita spoke up, "I always wear red, Tetsuo wears purple, a bit of a dead give away once you know that." Leafa nodded in understanding. "Kirito, close the door, you'll let all the warm air out."

Kirito nodded to his mom and went to close the door but stopped when he saw Asuna and Sachi chatting as they walked up to Liz's home, Shion trailing behind them. Before Kirito asked, Asuna piped up to explain, "We meet at the teleport platform and struck up a conversation, turns out we were all headed to the same place."

Kirito responded with an 'oh' before introducing everyone to each other, ending with his girlfriend. "... And this is Sachi, my girlfriend." This earned a wolf whistle from Ducker and Klein, causing everyone to laugh.

Dinner went smoothly, at least smooth for this dysfunctional family. Leafa and Shion really hit it off, practically becoming best friends in a matter of a few hours. Klein got a good punch to the stomach for hitting on Shion, a sword to his kneck for hitting on Asuna, and a kick to his junk for hitting on Leafa.

Kirito loved how all his families came together and became one over home cooked spaghetti and burnt garlic bread.

~•~•~•~

9 years ago

Kirito meet up with Asuna for their monthly lunch to catch up and chill out. He wasn't expecting the future queen of Aincrad to rush up and hug him. When she finally pulled away, she excitedly announced why she was so excited.

"Shigure asked me to marry him!" The news didn't surprise him, since the six foot four man messaged him panicking and nervous the night before. They exchanged small talk on their way to a small cafe on floor 21.

Over lunch they talked about the rise in monster attacks and loss of the top floors. The royals were relocated to floor 50 for safety. On the way back, Kirito dropped the bomb. "My brothers, Sachi and I are going to form a guild."

Guilds were formed by individuals but monitored by an official organization that reported directly to the monarchy. Guilds are like separate teams in a single army. Though they compete for resources, pay, and recognition, they all serve and protect the people and the royals.

There are some guilds who go rogue, or "orange," and do crime.

Asuna was shocked to hear her best friend say that. She knew he took sword fighting lessons, as did his brothers and girlfriend, but she was close to them all, so of course she would still worry. "Will you be alright?" Kirito smiled, "I haven't been sitting on my butt all these years. I think I can handle it." Asuna sighed and let it go, for now.

~•~•~•~

8 years later

Asuna and Shigure's wedding was three months ago, Asuna is now a month pregnant, and Kirito and Sachi are finally engaged. Sachi and Asuna were having a girl's weekend when the news came.

A messenger ran up to the soon to be queen, her coronation taking place in two weeks, and told her something she would've never imagined possible. "My princess, your husband, Lord Shigure, was killed on floor 74 protecting a village."

Asuna collapsed, barely being caught by her friend, Sachi. Sachi turned to the currier, "Go get Kirito and his brothers." The man nodded before running off to get said men.

Asuna awoke to her own bedroom. She knew it wasn't a dream, because he would always wrap his arms around her at night. He was gone. She vaguely recognized the fact that other people were in the room, but paid them no need as she started to sob.

Arms wrapped around her comfortingly, but they weren't the arms of a lover, they were the arms of a best friend.

Asuna never really felt 100% "ok" after losing the love of her life, but her daughter helped her feel as close as she could get.

~•~•~•~

7 years ago

Kirito was aimlessly wandering around the recently re-claimed 50th floor and was surprised to see all the new shops. One in particular caught his eye. "Egiru No Mise" he read aloud to himself (I looked it up).

He walked into the small item shop, planning on just browsing around a bit. He was greeted by a tall man with a warm smile and a brotherly aura. "Welcome to Egiru No Mise, I'm Agil the owner of the shop. Can I help you?" Kirito shook his head, "just browsing." Agil nodded and went back to wiping down the counter.

The man was probably about as tall as Shigure was, if not then slightly taller. He had a large two sided axe strapped to his back, and incredibly muscled.

Anyone would be intimidated, if not for his friendly disposition. The two men struck up a conversation while Kirito browsed. He sold the man some things he got from killing off a few monsters.

From then on Kirito went to that shop to sell off his junk and maybe find a few trinkets for gifts and stuff. He planned on telling Klein about this little shop too. (I feel bad for not putting Klein in the back story much... I really love the dufus character... Anyways, Egiru No Mise means Agil's shop, BTW)

~•~•~•~

6 years ago

Sachi and Kirito's wedding day finally arrived. Klein was the best man, with all of Klein's brothers being groomsmen. Asuna was the maid of honor and Leafa and Sachi were bridesmaids. Yui, who just learned to walk, was a flower girl along with Agil's daughter, Ai. The ring bearer was Recon, Leafa's son.

The wedding was far from being as grand and showy as Asuna's royal wedding, but it was beautiful all the same. Liz cried while Deiso got dust caught in his eyes. The reception took place at the castle ballroom, Asuna insisted.

The best part was the love so obviously shared between the bride and groom.

~•~•~•~

5 years ago

"What's wrong? Will Sachi be alright?" Kirito nervously gripped his wife's hand and looked at the doctor, Sachi just as anxiously awaited the doctors answer. "Your wife is fine, she's pregnant."

The couple stared at the doctor in shock until his words sunk in. They had been trying for a month, but they were still surprised with the information. "I'd say she's about two weeks along, congratulations. I'll leave you two to celebrate." Kirito took his wife in his arms and laughed. He hadn't smiled or laughed much since he joined the war, so hearing his laughter and the news together made Sachi cry tears of joy.

The couple messaged their family and friends the good news after calming down enough to think coherently.

~•~•~•~

4 years ago

Sachi laid down in bed after taking care of 3 month old Yuki, practically collapsing next to her equally exhausted husband. He wrapped an arm around her and she snuggled up next to him.

"I love you." She looked up to her husband as he gazed at her with affection and love in his eyes. She smiled brighter, "I love you too." They were only able to sleep for another two hours before they were once again awoken by the sound of their fussy baby's crying.

Parenthood was not as easy as Asuna made it look.

~•~•~•~

3 years ago

Sachi was out grocery shopping since it was her turn to make dinner but they were low on ingredients. Kirito was watching over Yuki while she was out.

She came home and smiled at all the pictures hanging in their entryway. There was a picture of her parent-in-laws at their wedding, one was of her own wedding and her parents wedding. Then there was one from Asuna's wedding.

There was a picture of Yuki on his first birthday, a picture of Sachi and Kirito when they first started dating, a family picture they took that Christmas with all of Kirito's family. Then there was Sachi's favorite. A picture of Kirito and Leafa with their parents. There were many more pictures each with a wonderful memory attached.

She smiled as she entered the living room, planing on heading to the kitchen to the room's left. There on the couch laid her husband and son fast asleep. She smiled and took a quick picture to go up in the entry way with all the other pictures of her favorite people.

~•~•~•~

2 years ago

Asuna recently started dating again, she knew Shigure wouldn't want her to spend her life alone. She tried dating Klein, I don't need to tell you it didn't last long. She dated a girl named Rosalia until she realized a week later that she was a leader of an orange guild, Rosalia wasn't really good at hiding it.

Then Asuna started dating Agil. Everyone agreed he was the best one for her. He was kind and loving, he understood and respected both Asuna's boundaries and the woman. He treated her with upmost care and Yui loved him.

Kirito could tell they would get married when they were ready, and would be right there next to them both to support them the whole way.

~•~•~•~

1 year ago

The tradgety that ruins Kirito's world took place on an autumn day with a few sun showers and a small breeze.

The Moonlight Black Cats, Keita's guild, had been called in to scout a small dungeon discovered near a village on the 27th floor (yes I looked this up too, I prefer to get my facts straight no matter how long ago I watched or read something).

Yuki was left in Liz's care, which didn't bother the boy one bit. He loved his Nana, especially all the faces she makes.

Asuna paced in her office, knowing she sent her best friend into an unknown situation. She couldn't help but feel uneasy, like something wrong would happen. Agil walked onto Asuna's office to find his girlfriend pacing nervously. He hugged her from behind to stop her. "They'll be fine, Kirito is strong." Asuna nodded, but the unease remained.

Four hours later she found Kirito wounded, crying, and alone standing outside her office. One look and she knew. Sachi died, possibly his brothers too. Without hesitating, she wrapped him in a hug, just like he had done when she lost her husband. No words were excanged, there was nothing they could say.

She insisted they sleep in the same bed that night, she didn't dare leave Kirito to grieve by himself.

~O~O~O~

Hope this bit of back story helped answer some questions. Sorry it took me a while to write, I wasn't entirely sure how I was gonna do this. I had events vaguely planned out, I just had difficulty with details.

Thanks so much for reading!

~Radio


	4. Chapter 4

Me: *hides behind kirito*

Kirito: *sighs* Radio-san apologizes for taking so long to update

Me: when I first started this, I had a back story, beginning, and end planned. The middle, however, eludes me. One major writer's block, two boxes of tissues, and lots of chocolate later, I came up with this, so enjoy.

~O~O~O~

"Your Majesty, please reconsider." Asuna glared at the man in charge of protecting the royal family. A selfish, power hungry man whom she didn't trust. She would've removed him from his post long ago, but Aincrad was not an absolute monarchy, and the man held a lot of pull in the council. Seven of the ten councilmen were bought, threatened, or coerced into siding with the man. But that changed when the council members were re-elected yesterday. Asuna refused to give the man time to win over any of the new councilmen and held a meeting after elections to get rid of the man.

"Heathcliff, your job is to protect me with your life, with no ulterior motives or ill intent. I can't trust you are doing this simply to protect me, I can't trust you with my life."

"Then who will be captain of the royal guards in my place? I'm well aware there are few who qualify."

"That is where you're wrong. Heathcliff, you are hereby removed from your post as captain of the royal guard and are banished from the castle by rule of the ten councilmen, the general in charge of all of Aincrads forces, and by myself, Queen Asuna of Aincrad."

Heathcliff was escorted out of the Queen's office and out of the castle, his medals and badges confiscated and striped of his rank.

Asuna had waited a long time to be rid of him, but now she had a bigger problem. Who would take his place? She trusted Agil, but giving him the position would be a conflict of interests. Kirito was her general and she needed him to stay that way. Sachi and Leafa were like her own sisters, but they had their own families and worries in their own countries. Klein had his own guild to take care of. She couldn't drag Mrs. Lisbeth into the war, and the woman already owned her own blacksmithing shop. Yoko and Keins, second and third in command, respectively, were both trustworthy, but not preferable. The council gave her the choice, considering it was for the people who would be protecting her, but they did recommend a girl by the name Argo the Rat. Asuna figured she might as well meet with the girl, since she didn't have many options. Deciding this news would best be delivered in person, she called for her fastest messenger.

~•~•~•~

Argo the Rat and Kirito were talking in a dark alley, the shadows of night and tall buildings next to them hid them from view.

"So, what're you planning on doing?"

"Follow the yellow brick road, they aren't exactly good at hiding."

"Do you have any idea how dangerous that could be?"

"It'd be more dangerous to ignore the threat. Now, will you tell me the info I came for?"

Argo let out a sigh, "the 'Emerald City' is a hidden dungeon on the 57th floor. Mostly filled with nature spirits. Be careful, the place is guarded by a rain goddess named Nike."

"Thanks." Kirito turned to leave. "You sure about this?" Kirito stopped and answered without turning around, "when haven't I been? There's no room to be making stupid risks, this is a war." He then left, Argo watching as he went, knowing he wouldn't stop for anything.

~•~•~•~

(Sorry I'm bogus with fight scenes unless they have magic…)

A man in mismatched armor cowered before the swordsman in black, his fallen comrades littered the throne room. A black blade was pressed against the man's throat. "Where is your leader?" A pause of silence passed before the swordsman got impatient. He pressed his blade against the other man's throat, drawing a small amount of blood. "Tell me where Kayaba Akihiko is!" Silence. With a swift hit to the head, the man fell unconscious. The swordsman removed the mask covering half his face, revealing Kirito. (I know, everyone saw it coming. And yes, the name of the dungeon is actually Emerald City. For those who know Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii, yes I meant to add Nike). With a sigh, Kirito tied up the man to be interrogated back at the castle.

~•~•~•~

Asuna was sitting in the parlor awaiting Argo's arrival when a guard busted into the room. "Lord Kirito has returned from his assignment with a prisoner." "Take the prisoner to the dungeon for interrogation later and tell Kirito that I order him to see a castle doctor." The guard nodded and left. With a sigh and faint smile, Asuna mumbled under her breath, "That stubborn man will be the death of me."

At that moment, Argo was thinking the same thing about Kirito as she was led through the castle to the parlor to meet the queen. "Um, can I know why the queen wants me?" The two guards escorting her remained silent. With a sigh Argo followed the escorts to a large redwood door. "The queen is inside, mind yourself." Argo entered the room to see a young woman with strawberry blonde hair and wearing the colors of the royal family sitting and drinking tea in a large parlor.

Asuna looked up and smiled at the girl who just entered the room. "You must be Argo the Rat, such a condescending name for such a pretty girl. Now how did you get such a name?" Argo walked forward and smirked, "I'm the best information broker around for a reason. No secret is safe from me."

Asuna raised an eyebrow at this, "Sounds like you're pretty skilled. How would you like to put these skills to the test?" "What? Looking for a new bodyguard?" "Close, a captain of the royal guard to be exact. You're the best option so far, but I have to know I can trust you." "If you have any doubts, just ask your general, he knows me."

~O~O~O~

So, I know it's been a while so I hope it was worth the wait. This chapter has bugged me endlessly and I'm still not 100% with how I ended it but I felt bad leaving you all high and dry for so long so here's the next chapter. Thanks for reading.


	5. Chapter 5

Hello, this will be the last chapter, excluding the epilogue, so please enjoy. It's been a long, annoying, journey that i will have to do for another story after this, but it's worth it. Thanks to those who read it when it first came out and for staying loyal this whole time.

Ok, mushy gushy over, on to the story!

~O~O~O~

With a sigh, Asuna sits down on the edge of her bed, excited that the month was finally over. The war was nearly done too. Two long years and they were storming onto the 75th floor in a week. (Let me know if I got anything wrong). Argo was amazing, the royal guard changed drastically, all for the better, thanks to her insight and leadership skills. With only training and preparations left to do next week, Asuna was looking forward to a break with her husband and daughter.

~•~•~•~

Kirito found some interesting details when conducting his investigation over the past month with a surprising resolution. He studied all the information available about monsters and one thing caught his attention, he discovered what could only be described as the monsters' 'queen bee'. It answered one big question had, "why did the monsters choose to attack now?" He who controls the queen controls them all. There was one man he could think of, Kayaba Akihiko. A well know traitor.

Akihiko used to be close friends with the king, Asunas father. One day the king was found dead in his room, his pregnant wife barely breathing. Her and her unborn child, Asuna, survived and Akihiko vanished. As the king's right hand man, he would've succeeded the throne had he successfully killed the queen and heir to the throne. The man was power hungry, seeking to subjugate and control everyone.

Another interesting fact was that only a few months after, a man appeared in Aincrad, just as power hungry. He climbed the ladder at an alarming rate, ending up working under the queen. He had been the captain of the royal guard since. Heathcliff was Akihiko, and Kirito was going to kill him.

(Finally got to this part! I've been waiting for so long!)

~•~•~•~

The army was exploring a cavern, looking for the legendary monster said to reside in the deepest part, the Skull Reaper. A ghastly skeletal monster incredibly powerful. The tunnel opened up to a large cavern, inside the monster was waiting for them.

Kirito watched as his men fell, breathing their last. Each hurt like hell, but he pushed on. He had to. The boss finally fell, alongside 14 brave soldiers, but it wasn't over yet. Kirito yelled out, "Kayaba Akihiko! Show yourself!"

Heathcliff emerged from the shadows slowly clapping his hands, "well done, but what will you do now?" Without verbally answering, Kirito pulled out his two swords and got into a ready stance. The two men charged at each other, attacking with vigor and incredible speed.

Kirito was bloody, cut, and panting by the time he made his final swing, Akihiko's head flying off his shoulders, face frozen in shock. It was over. Kirito explained what he had discovered a week ago to those in the room d cheers rang out, it was almost over. The one pulling the strings was gone.

~•~•~•~

Kirito and Asuna were having their monthly lunch as Argo and Agil watched the kids. The day was peaceful and the breeze was pleasant that day. They opted for outdoor seating at a small local café/bookstore. It was a cute little place owned by a girl named Mik, a cousin of Klein's. It was peaceful and then and there, they both knew everything was alright…. Until it was time to return to being parents.

~O~O~O~

Hey! It hasn't been month yet! How do you guys like it? Sorry I rushed the fighting, not the easiest thing to describe, in my opinion. I hope I ended this well, if I left any strings untied, let me know please. Thanks so much for your support!


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